Italian Steps - Regions of Italy - Cultural notes

Fact File

• Italy is divided into 20 regions, corresponding to ancient political divisions. Some regional boundaries, such as Tuscany and Campania, date back to pre-Roman times.



• Each region has its own capital. Some of the better-known towns include Napoli (Naples), capital of Campania; Roma (Rome), capital of Lazio; Milano (Milan), capital of Lombardia (Lombardy); Torino (Turin), capital of Piedmonte (Piedmont); Palermo, capital of Sicilia (Sicily); and Firenze (Florence), capital of Toscana (Tuscany).



• Italy is a relatively young country, as it was actually created between 1860 and 1870. Before then it was a collection of separate states, which had different traditions, languages and dialects, and were often in conflict with one another.



• Italians take great pride in the region of their birth and are more likely to say Sono veneziano, 'I'm Venetian', or Sono napoletano, 'I'm Neapolitan', than they are to say Sono italiano. This regional pride is known as il campanilismo, taken from the word campanile, bell tower.



• This strong sense of national and regional pride extends beyond Italy's boundaries - there are several 'Little Italies' around the world, and some of the most prominent were found in New York. At its height in the mid 19th century the population of Manhattan's Little Italy numbered 40,000. Today, numbers are dwindling, however the last remaining Little Italy near Manhattan's Mulberry Street still hosts an annual celebration of Italian food and culture called The Feast of San Gennaro.



• San Marino, the tiny state near Rimini on the Adriatic coast, is one of Italy's two surviving city-states. One tenth of the size of New York, it is said to have been founded in around 350 AD, when Europe was made up of small political units. Even though it's completely surrounded by Italy, San Marino survives as a state to this day and proudly asserts its independence whenever possible.



• Another state within Italy's mainland is the Vatican City State, the official seat of the Pope. This sovereign state situated within the city of Rome is the last survivor of the powerful Papal States. After the unification of Italy, the power of the Popes was confined to the Vatican and nearby palaces. Its autonomy as a state was only finally established in 1929.



• There are many islands around the coast of Italy - the best known are la Sicilia, Sicily, la Sardegna, Sardinia, Capri, Ischia and Elba. Sicily and Sardinia also have many smaller islands surrounding them, some of which are actually nearer to Tunisia than they are to Italy. One of these islands, Caprera, was home to Garibaldi, the hero of Italian unification. He bought half the island in 1857, and the other half a few years later.